New project successes for Berlinwasser

Beijing – As the spokesman for the BDI trade delegation that Federal Minister for the Environment Sigmar Gabriel is accompanying on his China trip and on the occasion of the Third German-Chinese Environmental Forum from 17 to 19 June 2009 in Foshan, Dieter Ernst, CEO of Berlinwasser International AG, explains, “The environmental forum sponsored by the environmental ministries of Germany and China, the Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business as well as the government of Guangdong shows that environmental technologies from Germany are helping to promote long-term economic growth in China.“

In China, people are now just as receptive to CO2 reduction, renewable energies and energy efficiency as they are to water resource management and the demand is increasing. During a workshop held in conjunction with the Third German-Chinese Environmental Forum, Dieter Ernst will present strategies for the treatment and utilization of wastewater sludge.

In light of the Chinese government’s 460 billion euro infrastructure program, China presents an attractive market for German environmental technology. The most important assets of BWI AG in its activities in China are the drinking water supply plant in Xi’an and the wastewater treatment plants in Hefei and Nanchang.

“Both from an economic and from an environmental standards perspective, as a German company we can contribute our expertise and experience in exemplary industrial and consulting projects. Continuity is highly prized in China. Thus, Berlinwasser International AG also operates its plants as instructive examples of how sustainability and environmental protection can be implemented in practice. This can be seen in the reception of our projects by authorities and the experts,” says Dieter Ernst.

Berlinwasser wins two new projects in China – wastewater treatment expansion in Nanchang and industrial reutilization of treated wastewater in Yuanping

Berlinwasser International AG (BWI) has chalked up two important successes in the Chinese market: the acquisition of a long-term operating contract for a wastewater treatment plant in Yuanping and a capacity expansion of the wastewater treatment plant that has been operating in Nanchang since 2004.

In the Chinese city of Yuanping in the province of Shanxi, Berlinwasser International AG will take control of, improve and operate an existing wastewater treatment plant with a capacity of 50,000 m³/day. The contract signed in Yuanping is for a term of 30 years. The joint venture established for this purpose with Sino-Dutch Water Investment Group Co., Ltd, SDWIG provides for an investment volume of about 18.9 million euros. “We apply the idea of water re-use and the closed-loop materials economy in an innovative way in water management“, explains Dieter Ernst. “Downstream from the wastewater treatment operation we will build and operate a facility for water treatment (30,000 m³/day), whereby the treated wastewater will have process water quality for industrial use.” In addition to the city of Yuanping, the aluminium manufacturer Shanxi Luneng Jinbei Alumina Company Ltd, also a party to the contract, purchases process water and operates one of the most modern aluminium smelting plants in Asia with an annual capacity of 1 million tonnes.

Another success was achieved in Nanchang, the capital of the province of Jiangxi: the capacity expansion of the wastewater treatment plant Qingshanhu, which was built by Berlinwasser International AG in 2004 and has been operated by the company since then, by 170,000 m³/day to the current 500,000 m³/day with a project volume of 310 million RMB (approx. 33 million euros). The construction work should be completed in six months.

“To be able to respond to the requirements of the dynamic market even better, we have concentrated our China business in a regional subsidiary, Berlinwasser China Holdings. The headquarters in Hong Kong and the regional office in Shenzhen offer the logistical and staffing requirements to make management know-how and experience from Berlin on all topics related to drinking water and wastewater available to Chinese cities and industries in a more focused manner”, explains Dieter Ernst regarding the China commitment.

Berlinwasser International AG, which markets the know-how of Berliner Wasserbetriebe internationally, via its subsidiary Berlinwasser China Holdings in China, operates a wastewater treatment capacity (dry weather) of 890,000 m³/day. In comparison: Berlin has a wastewater treatment capacity of 620,000 m³/day. “We will also continue to pursue BOT (build-operate-transfer) or TOT (transfer-operate-transfer) projects“, says Dieter Ernst. The China business is now and will continue to be one of the company’s outstanding fields.

Background

Nanchang
On 16 January 2003, BWI AG signed the project contracts for constructing and operating the Qingshanhu wastewater treatment plant with the municipal supply company (MPUB) and the wastewater treatment company (NSDPL) of the city of Nanchang, capital of the province of Jiangxi in southeast China.

The BOT project, which was ready for signing on very short order, was put into operation after just 18 months of construction time. In the operating period of 20 years, BWI AG will be responsible for smooth operation and treatment of wastewater in accordance with the applicable environmental standards. The project company Nanchang Qingshanhu Project Co., Ltd. was established for the purpose of realising the project. Commissioning took place on 23 October 2004.

In the initial expansion stage, the wastewater treatment plant will have a capacity of 330,000 m³/day and will treat the wastewater of about 1 million people of the city with a population of 3.5 million. The plant consists of a mechanical and a biological purification stage. The accumulated sewage sludge is fed into anaerobic digestion. Disposal of the sludge is handled at a landfill of the city of Nanchang.

In the second expansion stage, which is now to be realised in a very short time, the existing capacity will be expanded this year by 170,000 m³/day to 500,000 m³/day. The CSB threshold value (chemical oxygen requirement) required by the city must be complied with. The investment volume comes to about 7.6 million euros.

Hefei
On 24 November 2004, the contracts for the “Transfer and Operation of the Wang Xiao Ying Wastewater Treatment Plant“ project were signed in the Chinese provincial capital of Hefei (contract amount 480 million RMB) with the “Hefei Construction Commission“.

The project in the province of Anhui was based on an international call for tenders, which BWI won along with its Chinese partner, East China Engineering Science & Technology Co. Ltd. (ECEC), a Chinese engineering firm. The project company Hefei Wang Xiao Ying Sewage Treatment Co., Ltd. was established for the purpose of realising the project. The company took control of the wastewater treatment plant and an exclusive concession for a period of 23 years.

This plant, the largest in the province of Anhui, is a denitrifying activated sludge plant with simultaneous biological phosphorous elimination and mechanical sludge treatment. The plant was built in 2 expansion stages, whereby the first stage has been in operation since 1998 and the second stage since early 2002. Since commissioning, the plant has been running in controlled operation and treats the wastewater of about one million people.

Xi'an
Berliner Wasserbetriebe, the Xi’an Drinking Water Supply company and a financing firm from Hong Kong signed the joint venture agreement on the construction and operation of the south Xi’an drinking water supply plant in 1997. After a three-year construction period, the plant was commissioned on 9 November 2001 with a capacity of 500,000 m³/day.

The plant supplies roughly 3 million people in the former royal city of Xi’an. The drinking water supply plant ended the water shortage resulting from the dynamic industrial and tourism development of the city and secures the complete supply of the population. The city of Xi’an is responsible for collecting water usage fees.

The Golden Key reservoir, located 80 km away, supplies the raw water for the plant, which is one of the People’s Republic of China’s most modern and productive plants.

In December 2003 BWI sold its share in the drinking water supply plant in Xi’an to the chief partner, the Xi’an Water Supply Company. The reason was a decree of the Chinese government issued in 2002 in which contract terms with fixed dividend agreements for foreign partners were declared to be prohibited. This meant that the legal basis for BWI AG’s commitment was no longer valid. Nevertheless, a spirit of trust and cooperation continues to exist between BWI AG and the Xi’an drinking water supply plant.

Media contact
Berlinwasser International AG
André Beck
Senior Manager Communications
Stralauer Str. 32
10179 Berlin
http://www.berlinwasser.com/
info@berlinwasser.net
+49 30 814 68 585

Berlinwasser International AG
Berlinwasser International AG, as Germany’s leading service provider concentrating on the management and operation of drinking water supply and wastewater disposal systems, is active in water markets throughout the world. Within the framework of public private partnership (PPP) schemes, Berlinwasser International AG offers a broad range of infrastructure and consulting competencies for investment and development projects abroad. BWI’s range of services includes the design and implementation of operations management and management contracts, consulting and collaboration with financial investors. The BWI portfolio also includes concession agreements and BOT and TOT projects, which are managed from the company’s head office in Berlin.